Naturally
by Shadows of Truth
Summary: Two orphans are brought together in the world's most unwelcome orphanage. They were as close as any two kids possibly could be, but when the boy's father comes to stake claim to him, the two are separated for what seems like a lifetime. Was it possible that he could find her again and keep the promises he made? Or will she slip through the cracks of his memories to be forgotten?
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaim anything you recognize. Storyline kindly provided by Rocker Jackson- it didn't win in her poll so she allowed me to write it. I really hope you all take to it and review! Till I write again... :D**

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Dark clouds linger overhead, rain would soon be pouring down on the small town of Sunnyville, Rochester, New York. It was nothing new to the locals of the town, for the sun rarely ever shines upon that part of the vast country. Though rain does not always accompany the dark clouds that linger overhead, this night anticipates a rainstorm.

The clouds seem darkest over the local orphanage, making it almost scary weird to step foot on its premises. Most of the children that enter into the facility leave it by becoming of legal age, not many wanting to travel to the small town to adopt and locals making enough children on their own.

Ten year old, Jason Morgan, has been in the system since he was a few months old. His mother dying of natural causes, no father or next of kin to stake claim to him, Jason was cast into the abyss known as the orphanage. Days after his mother died, Jason was placed in the care of Sunnyville's Sunshine Orphanage.

He's learnt to work the system, making himself the most feared kid in the orphanage by beating up the toughest kid in the system at the age of seven. There was something in his eyes that made the other kids cower to him, leaving him in peace to serve out his sentence in the facility.

"Hey, man." Johnny O'Brien, one of the few friends he has, plops onto his bed - conveniently right next to Jason's. "Did you hear we're getting a newbie soon?"

"I heard." Jason says simply, laying on his stomach, reading an old motorcycle magazine.

"Aren't you the least bit curious?" Johnny presses on, pulling out a comic book from beneath his bed. "I heard its a girl."

"That's unfortunate for her." Jason says plainly, flipping the page, trying to focus on his magazine and not his friend's sudden interest in the incoming orphans. For being only ten years old, Johnny was a big flirt. "Carly hates newcomers."

"True." Johnny chuckles, laying on his stomach, getting into his comic. "If we're supposed to believe Max, not that I'm saying we do, but - if we did - he says she's pretty."

"Max thinks the lady that shovels us slop every day, calling it food, is pretty." Jason scoffs, turning the page to his favorite bike - the one he swears he'll buy one day. "Read your comic and get off the newbie."

"Fine by me." Johnny smirks, flipping the page. "This one never gets old."

Jason eyes his friend intently before returning his gaze to his magazine, not willing to admit that he was curious about the new addition to Sunshine Orphanage. He had caught a glimpse of her when the social worker brought her by.

Just that small glimpse of her had him wanting to see what she really looked like. The image he had in his mind was incomplete and he wanted to get the full version. She couldn't be more than six years old, he's sure of that much at least.

"LUNCH!" a pudgy, eight year old, Max shouts as he walks through the boys' wing banging on a metal pot with a wooden spoon. "GET YOUR SLOP WHILE ITS HOT!"

"You going to the mess hall?" Johnny hops to his feet, shoving his comic book back under his bed. "I heard its almost eatable today."

"I'll catch up." Jason flips the page, never wanting to go to the mess hall during the chaotic first part of lunch.

Johnny shrugs his indifference before following the rest of the boys out of the boys' dorm and heading down to the mess hall for semi-eatable food. Jason, on the other hand, continues flipping through his magazine, swearing one day he'll get the one he wants and ride off into the sunset - never looking back at this place for as long as he lives.

After a decent amount of time passes, he shoves his magazine under his mattress before walking out of the boys' dorm. He wasn't exactly thrilled with eating lunch, but he needed it to survive past this place, so he'll eat it. Jason's about to walk down the stairs when something causes him to look into the superintendent's office.

It was her. She's getting the usual lecture on how kids in the orphanage are supposed to act, not that the superintendent was actually looking at her to see if she was paying attention - which she wasn't. She must have felt his presence because she turned to the side to look at him.

He was immediately captivated by the deepest blue eyes he had ever seen - even darker than his - only with hers there was this slight glow to it. The darkness of her eyes shone bright against her milky white skin. Her hair a mop of wild brunette curls that leant a look of pure innocence to her.

In that moment he felt a mixture of awe and sorrow for the girl. Carly hated newcomers, but - even worse - she despised beautiful newcomers. Jason was certain that this girl fit the bill and thus will endure the unfortunate fate of dealing with Carly at her worst.

She smiles slightly at him, eliciting a slight smile to grace his lips. He didn't even know her, but she already had him doing something he has never done in that place - smiling, albeit barely so, but a smile was a smile. He lifts his hand slightly, in a sort of greeting, prompting her to do the same.

He would have stayed there, but the superintendent cleared her throat - forcing the girl to face her and listen to the rest of the boring speech. He wasn't worried for her at the moment though. She wouldn't be thrust in with the rest of them just yet . They'd explain things to her for the rest of the day and she'd sleep on the bed in the nursery - next to the infants in their cribs.

"Hey, man." Johnny passes him a plate of food - better known as slop. "What took you so long? The food's pretty decent today, but its still nasty when its cold."

"Got caught up." Jason could already hear Carly and the other girls talking about the new arrival. "Where's Francis?"

"Didn't you hear?" Johnny shovels a spoonful of slop into his mouth. "His ma picked him up late last night."

"Again?" Jason shakes his head, wondering when the woman was going to stop dropping Francis on the orphanage steps just to pick him up a couple weeks later. "What is it now? Six times in the last two months?"

"Eh, who can keep count anymore?" Johnny shrugs, shovelling more food into his mouth. "He'll be back soon, though, the kid can't stand being home with his deadbeat dad."

The rest of the day passes like it always does, the night welcomed by all and a dreamless sleep hoped for. The rest of the boys in his wing falls asleep the moment their heads hit the pillows. Johnny snoring like he always does, keeping Jason awake - like it always does. He's waiting out the snoring, knowing that the rain pouring down outside will get harder, drowning out the snores coming out of Johnny.

"Finally." Jason mutters, shoving his magazine back under his mattress. He's about to go to sleep when something catches his eyes. "What is that?"

A small flicker of light can be found walking past the closed door, peaking his curiosity and causing him to grab his jacket and check it out. Walking quietly out of the room, Jason follows the flicker of light and the shadow that comes paired with it. As he's walking, Jason realizes where he is, Francis's usual hiding place. He walks through the passageway, finding the girl that he had seen earlier that day, the newcomer. She is startled for a moment, but she relaxes at the sight of him.

"Did I wake you up?" she questions in the softest of tones, looking at him apologetically. Pure innocence shines through her eyes, making him feel worse for her.

"No." Jason replies, closing the passageway door. "I was awake."

"Oh." she whispers, sitting down upon the cushion before setting down the lantern. "Its nice here."

"Only when no one else is awake." Jason mutters, carefully sitting down on the other cushion. "What's your name?"

"Elizabeth." she says in a soft voice. "What's yours?"

"Jason." he concedes. "You gonna make this a habit? Sneaking around in the middle of the night."

"A boy that was leaving gave me a map." she holds out the piece of paper. "He said I'd like it."

"That was Francis." Jason says simply. "He's always helpful to newcomers, but he doesn't usually share this place."

"He said I'm special." she smiles, a slight blush gracing her cheeks. "He was really nice."

"You should get some rest." Jason stands up as she yawns again. "We have school in the morning."

"Where?" she asks, allowing him to help her up. "At a real school?"

"No, in the library." Jason pushes open the passageway door. "Come on, I'll walk you back to the nursery."

"You're really nice, too." Elizabeth comments, walking out of the passageway with him.

"Don't tell anyone." Jason smiles slightly. "Our secret, okay?"

"Okay." she giggles softly, following him down the steps to the nursery. "Our secret."


	2. Chapter 2

Twelve year old, Francis Corelli rarely ever hated anything. That was, of course, with the exception of the makeshift, deadbeat man that claims to be his father. His life was sorely complicated that he sometimes wished they'd take him from away from the people that are technically his parents forever.

Francis loved his mother more than his own life, but he still insisted that she had to have gotten mistaken as far as his "father" was concerned. Until he gets DNA proof that the useless waste of space is his father, Francis claims plausible disavowal.

And if in the event that the complete inhuman mogul turns out to be his father, Francis will forever hate the very DNA coursing through his veins. One thing he knew for sure, the only thing getting him through every single day of his pathetically pointless life, is that he will grow up and be smarter than his "father"...better than his "father"...more importantly, stronger than his "father".

"Where is that useless, lazy child of yours?" the devil himself, Ricardo, shouted at Francis's mother.

"He's doing his studies." his mother, Isabella, defends - standing in a defensive stance, preparing for his onslaught of anger. "He has semi-finals tomorrow."

"Studies? HA!" Ricardo snaps. "That pathetic child will never amount to nothing! Its your fault for saddling him with a girl name, you know that?"

"Francis was my father's name." Isabella's soft voice says firmly, defending her father's memory and her son's intelligence. "And Francis is smart...he can become anything he wants to be."

"Its stupid thoughts like that which keep that kid's head in the clouds!" Ricardo spits, grabbing Colette's arm swiftly - squeezing it in his strong grip. "Sigue así y usted personalmente se lo mando a la tumba. Al igual que su hija."

Francis peeked out through the crack in the door, his Spanish wasn't perfect, but he was certain he heard something that he wasn't supposed to hear. The look in his mother's eyes sent chills down his spine, he couldn't believe she endure such disrespect and absolute torture.

The sight of his mother like that had Francis returning to the book in front of him. He is determined to learn everything and anything he could get his hands on. He wants to be smart enough to put an end to his "father" before its too late. Only he couldn't get caught. It would kill his mother if he were to ever stoop to Ricardo's level.

"Yo, Jason." Johnny's out of breath as he holds onto the doorjamb for support. "Dude, you've gotta see this."

"John, if its Leo's abnormally huge mole on his back, I've seen it." Jason states, flipping through his magazine. "And trust me, once was more than enough."

"Okay, one, that thing is wicked cool." Johnny smirks, standing up once he caught his breath. "And two, this is so much cooler."

"What is it?" Jason sits upright, his curiosity peaked - shoving his magazine under his pillow.

"The new girl." Johnny's tone told him enough and had him standing up from his bed. "Carly looks like she's about to explode."

Jason walks at a leisure pace behind Johnny, heading to the girl's wing, hoping to god nothing has happened to the girl. Schooling his features, refusing to give away his true concern for her, he enters the wing along with his friend. The sight that awaited him was nothing like what he had imagined. It took almost everything he had not to laugh on the spot - another he rarely did in that place.

Carly was practically unravelling in front of Elizabeth yet she was completely calm. She had a soft smile on her face, her hands clasped together loosely in front of her, as if listening to an intriguing lecture on something she found interesting or appealing.

"What the hell are you looking at?" Carly practically shouts at Elizabeth, a slight spray saliva escaping as her emotions get the best of her. "Do you know how to speak, muffin face?"

"Maybe she's one of those broken kids." Mimi whispers from behind Carly - on of her many followers. "Like Wendy from before."

"Is that it?" Carly nudges Elizabeth yet she still has that same look on her face - clearly unaffected by Carly's words. "You some broken idiot or something?"

Having seen enough, Jason walks silently over to the girls, successfully placing himself between Elizabeth and Carly. He has seen Carly be a lot of things, but this was the worst he has ever seen her. Clearly Elizabeth wasn't going to bend to Carly's will and that had him even more at awe of her.

"Get in the car, sweetheart, please." Isabella pleads with her son. "He won't be asleep for long."

"Why do you do this?" Francis couldn't help but ask. "Why don't you just leave me at the orphanage?"

"Francis, please." Isabella pleads, glancing back at the house. "Please get in the car."

Obliging his mother, as he always does, Francis gets in the car and allows her to buckle him up. She was particular about stuff like that. Always having to keep him safe. There's no way of knowing just how many punches she took for him.

"Ti amo, figlio mio." his mother frames his face in her hands, kissing his forehead lovingly. "Forever. Don't you forget that."

"I love you, too, ma." he kisses his ma's cheek and, just like that, he is back at the orphanage. In his opinion, it was better than being at home.

Making his way up the steps, Francis does the usual run through with the check in lady before making his way upstairs. He's a little surprised to find the boy's wing completely empty, but then a thought comes to him and he just shakes his head.

Tossing his bag on the bed, he makes his way to the girls' wing, where the action was really happening. This had to be a new record for Carly. She usually tried to recruit newcomers before going all postal on them. That had him wanting to get to know the new girl even more.

"Back off." Jason says in a stern tone, the pure look of anger on his face. "Now, Carly."

"Are you kidding me?" Carly exclaims, looking between Jason and Elizabeth. "What is this? A new hero act? Since when do you care about the newcomers?"

"Since you started getting physical." Jason states. "Back off. Now."

"You're gonna regret this." Carly threatens him, trying to hide the pain in her eyes. "Mark my words, Jason. You will regret doing this."

"Back again?" Johnny whispers to Francis as they watch Jason's reaction to Carly's threat.

"Aren't I always?" Francis arches his eyebrow questioningly.

"Touche." Johnny smirks, watching as Jason leans into Carly. "What's he saying to her?"

"Trust me, you don't want to know." Francis replies, watching as Jason slips his hand into Elizabeth's and walks her out of the room.

The two friends silently walk away from the girls' wing, watching as Jason takes Elizabeth to Francis's usual spot before they head to the boys' wing. Francis's mother used to talk about finding your soulmate, how it could happen at any age and how undeniable it was, but he had never believed it. That was until now, of course. Now he believes it like he believes he needs to breathe to live.

"You didn't have to do that." Elizabeth's soft voice breaks through his thoughts as he sits against the wall.

"I know." he replies simply, looking at her intently. "That's why I did it."

"I don't get it."

"Whether you knew it or not, you were really pushing her buttons." Jason tries to explain. "Sooner or later she would've hit you."

"So you saved me?" she questions, looking at him curiously.

"I just stopped her." Jason belittles what he did, not wanting to be looked at like a hero or anything.

"Same thing." she replies, leaving over and kissing his cheek. "Thank you."

"I'd say you're welcome, but I didn't do anything."

"Sure." Elizabeth laughs softly. "If you say so."

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**Thank you so much for your kind reviews! I truly appreciate them! I'll be waiting with bated breath for your reviews on this update. Thank you, again!**


	3. Chapter 3

~* Eight Years Later *~

Pulling himself up into a sitting position, Jason Morgan glances at the clock on his bedside table, counting down the minutes until his eighteenth birthday. Normally, he would be the last one willing to celebrate any given occasion, especially his own birthday, but this year was different. This year marks the age of adulthood and the start of his freedom. Once he turns eighteen, he no longer has to live under their roof, no longer has to deal with the entire Quartermaine family.

_"I don't want that child in my house!" Monica, his new "mom", exclaims._

_"That child is my son." his father, Alan, defends - as if Jason cared if he was wanted there or not. The point was that he didn't want to be there._

_"Regardless." Monica snaps. "You take your child out of this house or I'll leave and I won't be going alone!"_

Rolling his eyes, realizing how thankful he was that she didn't want him in her home, Jason glances around his room. Instead of having to live among them all the time, his father had put him up in the gatehouse, much to Jason's delight. He'd prefer it to having to see that woman every day.

_"I'm sorry you had to hear that." Alan had apologized. "You'll like it out here, I'm sure. You won't have to hear the fighting that goes on in that house."_

_"Sure." he gave as his reply, dropping onto his bed. "Whatever."_

_"Okay...well, I'll have cook bring out your meals." Alan glances around the room before focusing on Jason. "I know its not ideal, but I'm sure its better than living at that orphanage. That place was beyond a disgrace."_

_"I liked it fine."_

_"Well, now you'll have more chances at a better future." Alan says simply. "You're a Quartermaine now...you'll have the world at your feet."_

Quartermaine his ass. Jason never did take on that name, much to Alan's dismay, not that Jason actually cared about that. The last thing Jason wanted was to leave the orphanage. He had fought it as hard as he could, but in the end it wasn't his decision. The state forced him to move and thrust him into this psycho family.

Thoughts of the orphanage had Jason pulling out his wallet, a sudden need to see the worn out picture that laid within. He couldn't even count how many times he had took out that picture, needing to see her, to hold out hope that she would be okay without him. That she'd survive that place and go onto better things.

When he had been old enough to drive, Jason drove back to the orphanage, but she had been long gone by then. Adopted. They wouldn't tell him to who or even if the family was a good one, they just told him she was gone. Now, all he is left with is that picture. The memories are hazy, he barely remembers what it was like to see her smile or hear her laugh, he hardly remembers her at all.

The only thing he truly remembers, that he swears he'll never forget, are those deep blue eyes. Her blue eyes haunt his every dream, always reminding him of the promises he had made and the broken look that filled her eyes when Alan took him away. It had been the hardest thing he had ever had to do in his young life.

"Hey, man!" the voice of his best friend, Johnny, breaks through his thoughts.

Johnny had been adopted by one of the families in Port Charles, something Jason had been damn thankful for. It was four years after Jason had left the orphanage, but he didn't care about that. All he cared about was having his best friend, as annoying as he may be at times, and he wouldn't trade Johnny for anyone. Well, almost anyone, anyway.

"What?" Jason states, yanking open the front door to the gatehouse.

"Happy Birthday, butt face." Johnny says simply, shoving a box into his friends arms before walking past him. "Eighteen, right?"

"Never fails." Jason shakes his head, shutting the door. "We're the same age, John. Stop asking."

"Hey! I don't turn eighteen for a few more months." Johnny puts his hand over his heart. "Don't make me old like you just yet."

"Shut up." Jason states, dropping down onto the couch. "What's with the gift?"

"Don't get any ideas." Johnny scoffs, grabbing a drink from the wetbar before dropping onto the club chair. "That's from Carly. Apparently she had to go shopping for a new outfit and couldn't drop it off herself."

"What is it?" Jason pushes it to the side.

"A fancy t-shirt or something, I think." Johnny shrugs. "I'm pretty sure she expects you to wear it, though."

"Just great." he groans, laying his head back. "Leave it to Carly to make me hate this day even more."

In an apartment in central New York City, New York, a banging sound on the door jolts Elizabeth out of her deep slumber, banishing her dreams of Jason for another day. Rubbing away the fog from her eyes, the beautiful fifteen year old, glances at the clock that hung from the wall, time for school.

_"You've been adopted." the superintendent tells her plainly, handing her a bag full of stuff. "They're waiting just outside."_

_"Adopted?" Elizabeth looks at her like she's crazy. "Who would want to adopt me? I'm already thirteen."_

_"You wanna stay here?" the superintendent counters. "Get going, Elizabeth."_

_"Okay." she replies, taking the bag before walking out of the orphanage. Not at all ready for who was waiting for her. "You adopted me?"_

_"My ma, actually...but you'll be living with me."_

Throwing her hair into a messy ponytail, she grabs her towel, and pulls open the door. A soft smile graces her lips as she stares at the one person that had never given up on her. The one person that never turned his back on her. The one person that has become her entire family rolled into one.

"Morning, Lizzie." Francis says as he hugs her tightly. "Any requests on breakfast?"

"Mm, pancakes with a side of scrambled eggs and crispy bacon. Oh, can you add some breakfast sausage to that...and..." she ticks off her list as she pulls away. "Um, I also want buttered toast and some fruit...and..."

"I seriously don't know where you put all that food." Francis chuckles, kissing her forehead. "Get ready for school...I'll have our breakfast set by the time you're done."

"You're having breakfast with me?" Elizabeth looks at him skeptically. "Does that mean...is Sonny..."

"Can't I just have breakfast with you without you thinking I'm being sent out of town?" Francis shakes his head. "I'm not going anywhere, Lizzie. Now go get ready before we're both late."

"Okay!" she smiles brightly before bounding off to the shower to get ready for school.

Shaking his head, the young twenty year old, Francis Corelli makes his way into their kitchen to get started on breakfast. Working for Sonny had not been his first choice, but he had to make enough money to support both him and Elizabeth.

With no prior experience, not a lot of places wanting to hire someone with his kind of background, Sonny's offer had been the only one he could accept. Its hardest on Elizabeth, having to live on her own sometimes when he has to handle business, but its best for both of them. The money's good and the support that they both get from Sonny and the other guards...people like them need it.

"Corelli." Francis answers his cellphone.

"Its time to make the move." Sonny's voice says firmly. "You gonna be ready?"

"Yeah." Francis confirms, glancing at the the kitchen door. "Port Charles, right?"

"Yeah. Port Charles." Sonny confirms. "Have you spoken to Lizzie about it?"

"Not yet." Francis admits, turning his attention back to the cooking. "We'll be ready, though."

"Okay." Sonny says simply. "The plane takes off at noon. I'll see you two at the strip."

"We'll be there." he assures before ending the call, all the while, wondering how he was going to break it to Elizabeth.


	4. Chapter 4

Standing in her empty bedroom, aside from the remaining boxes that will soon make its way to the moving truck, Elizabeth couldn't believe that they were really leaving New York City behind them. In has only been two years since Francis saved her from the orphanage, but its been the most eventful two years of her entire life.

In just two years, she has managed to get enough stuff to fill up an entire moving truck. Strange how much her life could change in such a short time. She's not too sad to move, as far as friends and memories are concerned, but she will miss the city life. Since moving in with Francis, she had gained a passion in the arts and New York City provided her with the best sights to sketch and paint.

With life moving on the fast track, there was never a shortage of things to put onto canvas. The sadness of car crashes, the pain of losing someone you love, the heartache of loss to begin with. Then there's the romance. Love comes in an abundance in that city, something she loved putting onto paper. Yeah, her artistic side will definitely miss New York City.

"Hey." Francis's soft voice greets as he knocks softly on her door. "You just about ready?"

"Yeah...just a couple more boxes." Elizabeth assures, turning away from her bedroom to look at him. "This is gonna be a good thing, right? Us moving, I mean."

"Only one way to find out." Francis counters, walking over to take her hands in his. "Whatever the case may be...whatever Port Charles will hold for us...we'll get through it together. I promise."

"You always did know the right things to say." Elizabeth smiles slightly, taking a deep breath. "Okay...I'm ready."

"That's my girl." Francis slings his arm across her shoulder. "Let the guys handle the rest of the boxes. We have a plane to catch."

"Did you know that at least fifty ships dock in Port Charles every day?" Elizabeth points out as they walk out of the apartment. "I mean, that's crazy isn't it? Fifty ships every single day."

"Its basically a town for import and export, Lizzie." Francis shakes his head, not at all surprised that she had looked it up while packing. She's the best at multi-tasking between the two of them. "I'm sure its a normal thing for their town."

"Well, I think its crazy." Elizabeth says simply. "All those ships...all that pollution...its practically barbaric."

"Whatever you say, Lizzie."

"Don't even get me started on the fact that they have an entire street devoted to hookers, drug dealers, and strip clubs." Elizabeth looks at him seriously when he opens her car door for her. "An entire street, Francis...I mean, New York City doesn't even have that and its an actual city!"

"You gonna get in the car any time before I turn fifty?" Francis counters, smirking slightly. "Sonny'll handle the drug aspect, okay?"

"Its a start." Elizabeth accepts, sliding into the car before he shuts her door. "Maybe you can talk him into doing something about the strip clubs. Its highly degrading to women everywhere."

"Baby steps, Lizzie, baby steps." Francis chuckles as he starts the car. "Sonny's not god."

"Coulda fooled me." Lizzie laughs softly. "The man acts like he is...all he needs is a name change."

"I'll let him know you think so."

"That's okay." Elizabeth kicks up her heels. "I can tell him when we see him."

"Of course." he smiles slightly, shaking his head. "This is going to be the longest twenty minute flight ever."

Leaning against the wall, at the way back of the cafeteria, Jason was more than ready to blow out of that place. School was only good for one reason, it got his father off his back and gave him a legit reason to be out of the family's constant ridicule.

"Jason!" Carly's voice has him swallowing back a groan. "There you are!"

"Carly, stop." Jason says seriously, removing her arms from around him. "I'm not gonna tell you again."

"I just wanted to hug you since its your birthday." Carly shrugs, looking him over. "Why aren't you wearing the shirt I got you? Its close to your style and its stylish!"

"Carly." he says warningly. "Stop."

"Whatever." Carly shrugs, pulling out a piece of paper. "Don't skip next period. I have something special planned for your birthday."

"Sure." Jason takes the piece of paper before watching her walk away.

"So...skipping next period?" Johnny guesses, holding open the trash bin for Jason to toss the note.

"What do you think?" Jason counters, grabbing his book bag. "I'm gonna check out this apartment...you coming?"

"Skip class or endure Carly's breakdown when you don't show up to her surprise?" Johnny chuckles, following him out of the cafeteria. "What do you think?"

"Lets get out of here then."

Slinging his bag over his shoulder, the two guys walk down the halls, both itching to be out of that place already. The orphanage was bad, but they'd both take it over being in the public school system. At least they didn't really care about them or any of the other kids in the orphanage. While they still don't care about either of them in the school, the school board does care about Jason's family and the rest of the students. Which never really landed in their favor.

Not at all sure what pulled his attention into the office, Jason's eyes diverted there, his eyes landing on a girl enrolling into the school. She must have felt his gaze because she turned slightly, meeting his eye before her attention was pulled away again and she walked out of his sight. Something about her eyes stuck with him as he and Johnny walked out of the school. It couldn't be, he thinks to himself as he opens his car door. It was just too big a coincidence.

"So...how do you like the school?" Francis asks Elizabeth as they leave Port Charles High. "We can always put you in the private school. I'm sure it'll be a lot better..."

"The school is fine." Elizabeth shakes her head, smiling slightly when he opens her door for her. "Why pay so much for the same level of education? I'll be fine in public school."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes." Elizabeth assures. "Now, don't you have a meeting to get to?"

"Someone's in a hurry to do some exploring." Francis teases, shutting her door before getting into the driver's side. "Be careful, okay? This isn't New York City...no one knows you here."

"Just the way I like it." Elizabeth laughs softly. "Relax. I'll have Max...he's young, but he's a great body guard. I'll be fine."

"Speaking of Max...take it easy when you two start school." Francis says seriously, pulling out of the school. "You're already running circles around him...I'd hate to think what you'll put that kid through in school."

"I make no promises."

Shaking his head, Francis drives her to the local diner for an early dinner before heading off to his meeting with Sonny. He wasn't all that thrilled to be leaving her on her own, seeing as its their first day in a new town, but he had a job to do and she was more than self-sufficient. She wasn't really the one he was worried about, not really. Its everyone else.

"Maybe I'll be able to paint some good places after all." Elizabeth comments, shrugging out of her jacket and walking further into the diner. "Excuse me, hi...can you tell me what's good on the menu?"

"New to town?" the waitress guesses, gesturing for Elizabeth to follow her to the counter. "Locals know the menu by heart."

"Its like that for me in New York City." Elizabeth admits, plopping down on the stool. "So...any suggestions?"

"Why don't I bring something out and you can tell me if you like it?" the waitress counters. "I'm Emily, by the way."

"Elizabeth." she replies, shaking the waitress's hand. "Nice to meet you."

"You, too."

Waiting for the waitress to come back, Elizabeth felt a strange sense of being watched, prompting her to turn around. An elder lady stood a few feet away, looking at her strangely, making Elizabeth feel like she had something on her face. That or she was missing some kind of clothing from her body.

"Everything okay?" Elizabeth asks the woman, prompting tears to fill the old lady's eyes.

"Audrey, everything okay?" Emily questions the lady, concern obvious in her voice.

"Yes, I've changed my mind on eating." Audrey explains, shaking her head. "Its nice to see you, dear, but I must go."

"Was it something I said?" Elizabeth asks Emily once the older lady was gone.

"No...Audrey's kind of fragile these days." Emily shakes her head. "You're fine."

"If you say so." Elizabeth shakes her head, trying to get the old woman's face out of her head. "So...what is this exactly?"

"An Emily surprise." Emily laughs softly. "Come on...you look like a girl that's not afraid to take risks...eat up."

Looking at the waitress curiously for a moment, Elizabeth shrugs before digging into the contraption that was laid out in front of her. Turned out that it was beyond delicious, prompting Elizabeth to question to girl further, but not getting any real answers. Accepting that it'll stay a secret, Elizabeth pays for the food before leaving the diner. Leaving a standing promise that she'd be back for more another day.

"Hey." Jason walks into the local diner, smiling slightly at his sister. "You almost off?"

"Just about." Emily shakes her head. "Shouldn't you be in school?"

"I'm going to look at the apartment. You still want to come with me?"

"Definitely." Emily shakes her head. "Coffee while you wait?"

"Sure." Jason plops down on the stool that Elizabeth had just been sitting on. "One for the idiot."

"I heard that." Johnny counters, having just walked into the diner. "Hey, short stuff."

"We're the same height." Emily counters, jabbing his arm before pouring both of them a cup of coffee. "Give me ten more minutes and I'll be off."

"I can wait." Jason says simply. "The apartment isn't going anywhere."


End file.
